


Antigen

by Oceaneyez86



Category: Hanson (Band), The Returned (Movie)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Anthem Era, Character Death, Child Death, Crossover, Explicit Language, Family Drama, Gen, Gun Violence, Hate Crimes, Hate Speech, Horror, Post-Zombie Apocalypse, Science Fiction, Suspense, Thriller, Violence, Work In Progress, Zombie Apocalypse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-27
Updated: 2018-08-06
Packaged: 2019-06-16 23:30:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15448257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oceaneyez86/pseuds/Oceaneyez86
Summary: What would you do if your loved one was running out of medication they need to take every day in order to survive? Would you comfort them in their final moments or would you do anything in your power to save them? This is a story of two brothers forced to choose when the world is on the brink of a 3rd worldwide zombie pandemic. This is a crossover over with Hanson and the 2013 movie The Returned and takes place in that universe. I do not own the rights to that universe only my original storyline, characters and ideas added to the universe. I don't own any rights to anything Hanson related. This is a pure work of fanfiction.





	1. The Returned

**Author's Note:**

> POV Taylor, Zac, Taylor

            I kicked the door in almost effortlessly. Adrenaline was coursing through every cell in my body now. A smile spread across my face. I was almost delirious with the delight of knowing that this was all about to come to an end. It had taken me 5 years to track his coward ass down but finally, he was in my grasp. I planned to savor every moment of this. This very moment had played through my mind nonstop since his betrayal. I had visualized every detail every goddammed day for the last 1,815 days. He would beg for my forgiveness and plead for my mercy, but both would be denied. When I looked him in the eye I would not see my eyes, but the eyes of the one I failed to protect. My agony would be made anew, and it would be easy to end his life.  Only then would I finally know peace. Once I had spilled his blood. 

            This was by far the shittest place he had holed himself up in. The room smelled of rat feces, booze, and decay. Liquor bottles covered the floor. A single light illuminated the dilapidated studio apartment casting shadows around its perimeter. My foot tapped a beer can and sent it rolling across the grimy wooden floor. It came to a stop at the edge of a shoe just barely within the cast of dim light. My heart quickened, and I heard a buzzing in my ears. My hand tightened around my gun like I was clutching a lifeline. His moment of reckoning was at hand. 

 

            Relief washed over me as the door burst open. For one fleeting moment, I was afraid Taylor had abandoned his fervent mission to end my life. I don’t think he had seen me yet, though I was only yards away. He looked exactly like my brother but at the same time as a complete stranger. This Taylor was terrifying. His bright blue eyes were wide and filled with indescribable rage. Guilt tore at my heart and I clenched my fists. I was in physical pain as I saw firsthand what I had done to him. My sensitive and compassionate brother was gone; only to be replaced by this bloodthirsty madman. I felt a beer can roll against my foot and I knew that I had been spotted. My breathing quickened but I forced myself to calm down, after all, it was this atonement that I desperately wanted after all the years running.

            I stepped into the light. It was the first time in almost 5 years that my brother and I had been in the same room. He drew his gun instinctively and I raised my hands to show that I was unarmed. 

            “Nice to see you too.” I managed to say at last.

            “You shouldn’t mock a man when he’s pointing a gun at you, Zachary.” His voice was ruthless. “I think it is very unwise.”

            We stared each other down for what felt like ages. He caught me off guard when he lunged forward and grabbed the neck of my t-shirt. I made no protest as Taylor brought the heel of his gun down across my temple. The pain was blinding, and I felt my legs as they gave out beneath me. My vision blackened, and I was unconscious before I even hit the ground.

 

5 Years Prior

            “Another Returned hate crime was reported earlier this morning near a Returned Clinic downtown. The only details the police have released at this time is the victim was ambushed by masked assailants on their way to pick up their monthly treatment. This is the fourth Returned related crime this month. Similar crimes against the Returned appear to be escalating around the country. The trend seems to be closely related to the recent formation of The Anti-Returned Alliance.”

            I listened intently to our small TV on top of our refrigerator as I made the morning coffee. Every day it seemed to get worse for the Returned. Shunned and feared by half the world and hated and abused by the other. Once the stream started to flow from the coffee pot I leaned against the kitchen island and craned my neck to watch the rest of the interview.

            “Here as our guest today is one of the founders of the ARA, Sebastian Crane.  Now Mr. Crane, could you tell us what the real motives are behind the ARA?”

            I scoffed. _The complete genocide of those infected with the virus that nearly wiped mankind off the map, twice!_   Of course, he gave some politically correct bull shit answer about wanting to educate the masses about the dangers of the Returned and the flaws in the system currently dealing with the infected.  ‘Infected’ was the word the ARA chose to use instead of pronouns because they did not view them as humans anymore. 

            “Those infected, have been known to be reckless about their condition, particularly the homeless.  If one homeless infected miss just one dose, then we have another Montgomery incident all over again, maybe even worst.”

            Just thinking about the Montgomery incident made me wince. Even though it happened two years ago it was still fresh in our minds. A homeless and ill Returned was too weak to make it to the clinic for his monthly supply of treatment. He was staying in a tent city under a huge overpass in Montgomery, Alabama with hundreds of other homeless people. The lost was somewhere in the thousands once the military got it under control. Relations had always been strained between the Returned and the rest of society, but that incident was the real turning point. The ARA loved to use fear has its number one driving force to brainwash citizens against their fellow Americans.

            “The government is trying to make you believe those infected are still human, but their biological time bombs that have put this country into trillions of debt to supply their treatment.  The government is also trying to make you believe the Return Protein reserve isn’t dangerously low.” 

            “Dad?” 

            A small voice broke my attention.  It belonged to a lanky 10-year-old boy with eyes like mine and a smile like his mothers. I quickly turned the TV on to Saturday morning cartoons. He didn’t need his mind to be poisoned by the media. We had always tried to keep his exposure to the backlash against the Returned to a minimum. I wanted to keep his inherently good nature intact as long as possible.

“Morning champ.”  I reached into a cabinet and pulled out his favorite cereal and grabbed a bowl for him. “You’re up early this morning.”

            I finished making his bowl of Coco Pebbles as I watched him sit down on his stool across from me. The look on his face told me something was bothering him, and I had a pretty fair idea what was troubling him. It wasn’t like him to be up this early on the weekend. I decided not to pressure him into to tell me right away. 

            “Yeah, I had trouble sleeping last night, Dad.”  He leaned on his elbows and rested his chin between his hands. “I-I’m worried about the dinner tomorrow night.” He looked down into his bowl of cereal.

            I leaned across the kitchen island opposite of him so my eyes were level with Jonah’s.  He hated to be coddled so I made sure to proceed with caution. 

            “Why would you be worried about the dinner tomorrow?” I asked softly pretending not to know what was troubling him. 

            “I’m afraid of what will happen.” He finally looked up at me with eyes that look almost identical to my own and his lips trembled just for a second. 

            “Nothing bad is going to happen, Jonah,” I said as I circled the kitchen island and rested a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “It’s just a family dinner. Like during holidays and birthdays.”

            “I know but what if-” I cut him off before he could go any further.  

            “You know why we’re having this dinner right?” I asked him.

            He nodded his head. His eyes switched back down into his bowl of soggy cereal. 

            “Then you know there is nothing to be afraid of right, tough man?” I tousled his hair playful bringing a smile to his face. 

            “Yeah, I know.” He perked up and dipped his spoon into the sludgy brown mess in his bowl.

            “Gross, let me fix you a new bowl,” I said reaching for his bowl.

            “No! I like it this way.” He swatted my hand away and quickly shoveled waterlogged Coco Pebbles into his mouth.

            “Ok, ok.  I’m not going to take them from you, slow down.” I leaned over and kissed the top of his head. 

 

            “The Great Deceiver is at work among us.  Satan is using our own temples to corrupt the body of Christ. Do not be easily swayed by what the government is trying to sell you. No, the government is not concerned with your everlasting soul.” Our pastor declared from the pulpit.  

            Church doctrine varied widely about the Returned. Some taught the truth, that it was a serious medical condition such as AIDS or any other bloodborne pathogen but the others, like my family’s church, taught that they were a walking abomination to God. Many churches believed the virus was one of the plagues foretold in the Book of Revelation as God’s way to purge out the wicked to make way for the seconding coming of Christ. Anyone who was infected but Returned they considered to be fighting against God’s will and automatically damned to hell. Our church did not allow membership to any Returned and if you were involved or married to a Returned you were forced out. 

            Our pastor was a big supporter of the ARA. I  noticed that when the ARA had a media conference during the week his sermons the following Sunday were filled with Anti-Returned propaganda. This Sunday was no different.

            “I want to remind you of what the scripture says in the Book of Revelation 19 verse 18 ‘Come and eat the flesh of kings, generals, and strong warriors; of horses and their riders; and of all humanity, both free and slave, small and great.’ This plague was ordained by God and those who stand in the way of God’s will are enemies of the one true God. The Returned are trying to defy God’s will and will be cast out into the lake of fire.”

            It was extremely hard to make it through these sermons. I instinctively put my arm around Jonah and pulled him a little bit closer to me. He relaxed and rested his head and my shoulder a little. My other hand found its way to wife, Danielle’s, hand and she gave me a reassuring squeeze. We could have easily left the church my family had belonged to for generations, but it would have looked suspicious. My family didn’t need any more unwanted attention these days. It was hard enough being one-third of a band on top of things. But at least my fortune, small as it is, was able to provide the privacy needed to protect my family.

            I zoned out as the pastor continued with his tirade about mixing with the Returned. It wasn’t until he mentioned that he had inside information from the ARA that our state was going to start a new legislation to pass a series of new laws that would force the Returned to containment facilities and would force them to undergo medical testing. The laws would also revoke their right to vote, marry and have children and a host of other inalienable rights. For the first time since the second outbreak, I was starting to get scared. Fear could be the very thing that would damn us all to hell. But now wasn’t the time to start wavering. I had to think of Dani and Jonah’s safety. It was time to come clean to my family.   


	2. Coming Clean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Taylor's confession tear his family apart or make it stronger?

It was always hard for me to sit still, especially for long periods of time; Even harder when I was in very boring surroundings like church. I tried not to fidget in my seat, so I opted for scratching one of my ankles with the opposite foot even though it didn’t itch. That temporarily satisfied my legs urge to move. The pastor was really on his soapbox again that morning. I wished that he would focus on other things instead of how much he hated the Returned.  Sometimes I pretended to be sick just so I didn’t have to go to church on Sundays, but I knew how uncomfortable it made Amelia to go alone.

            “The ARA is planning to start a new legislation starting here in Oklahoma. One that will make things safer for those of us not infected with the mark of the beast. If they can get the backing of a political party they can pass laws to make it so those infected live in special containment faculties where they can be intensively studied for medical purposes.”  The Pastor started to explain.

            Mia reached over and took my hand.  We had only been married for a few months, but she was the light of my life. I used to think no one would ever understand me or understand the demands of my job and lifestyle. God made her especially for me and there was nothing I would not do for her. I rubbed my thumb over the soft skin on the back of her hand and I felt her relax next to me. 

            “Only when the infected have been safely contained will we be able to do more thorough research. Because the Returned are so unstable the legislation will also push for laws to prevent them from voting, holding public office, and reproducing.” 

            A few people clapped in the congregation; shamefully one was my dad. He was a diehard supporter of the Anti-Returned Alliance. I would not at all be surprised he was a card-carrying member. After a beer or two and he could convert the most Returned loving person into an ARA supporter.

            My leg finally won the war and I started to bounce my knee. I tried to think about happier things, like the huge family dinner later that night. Taylor and his wife, Dani, invited the whole family over. The last time they had all of us over was to announce they were having Jonah. They had been trying for a few years so it was an extremely happy occasion. I suspected that is the reasoning for the dinner tonight. It wasn’t easy preparing dinner for a family the size of a small army so when we got together it is a big deal. Plus, as usual, I was striving. 

            “I would like everyone to contribute to a love offering to our fellow likeminded individuals at the Anti-Returned Alliance. The funds will help make our state safer, then America safer from these monsters masquerading around as people.” The pastor opened a wooden box sitting on a table below the pulpit. 

            Dad turned around in his seat and eyed the rest of his family sitting behind him.

            “I want our family to be the biggest contributor.” He said proudly.

            “Walker!” Mom scolded him.

            “What? I want the ARA to know the Hanson family supports them.” He rationalized. 

            In unison, we all reached for our checkbooks. I knew it was better to give something then to hash it out with dad. It would have complicated things more and that’s the last thing Mia and I needed right now. She passed me the checkbook and I quickly wrote out a check for a few hundred dollars and deposited it in the wooden box at the pulpit. One by one my family members made trips to the box. 

            Taylor caught my eye on the way back to his seat. His face was red and his jaw tight. He looked like he is ready to punch something. Knowing Taylor’s compassionate nature it must have been hard for him to give to an organization like the ARA. Our eyes met and I gave him a little bit of smile to try and let him know he was not alone. Our family was very set in its ways and it was easier to go with the flow than try to fight against it, or should I say fight against our Dad. 

            I was so relieved when service was over so I could get up and stretch my legs.  Groups of churchgoers gathered in small clusters to socialize and talk politics. Pastor Copeland came over to our family. 

            “Walker!” He said shaking Dad’s hand with both of his. “It warms my heart to see a family so in sync with one another.” 

            “That’s what happens when you teach them the word of God,”  Dad answered proudly. 

            Taylor took Jonah’s hand and ushered him out of the church with his wife following close behind. They must have been in a  hurry to get things ready for tonight. I smiled and nodded politely at our pastor as Mia stopped to gush over our little nephew, Jacob, my sister Jessica’s baby. I loved to see her with my nieces and nephews. We had seriously been thinking about adding to our huge family ourselves. 

            I leaned in and blew a raspberry on Jake’s round little cheek making him giggle.  Mia took my hand in hers.

            “Zac, we better head out. I want to bake some cupcakes for the dinner tonight.”  She reminded me. 

            “Yes! I love cupcakes.” I grinned and rubbed my tummy.

            “You’re not allowed to touch them until the dinner tonight.” She glanced over at Jessie.  “Last time I made cupcakes for Sarah and Ike’s baby shower and Zac ate all but 5 before the shower. I was so embarrassed I had to stop and get some from the store.”

            Jessie rolled her eyes and shook her head. Growing up with me Jessie knew firsthand that I could put away some food.

            “In my defense, they were chocolate and no one told me it was for Ike and Sarah’s baby shower.”  I tried to sound offended, but Mia just elbowed me playfully.

 

 

            I kicked my shoes off and lounged on the couch while Mia went to fix us a couple of sandwiches for lunch. Nothing good was on TV so I flipped through the channels aimlessly. Mia yelled from the kitchen for me to turn it over to the news to see if they had more information on the hate crime that had happened yesterday morning. I was stunned when I clicked over to our local news. 

            Police were in front of one of the local distribution clinics where the Returned went to pick up their monthly supply of treatment just a few blocks from our home. They were dressed in full riot gear trying to hold back angry groups of protesters. Hundreds of people were yelling and chanting, some even threw a couple of bricks at the line of police officers. 

            “Mia! You have to come see this!”  I leaned forward towards the TV.  _What the hell happened in the last four hours?_

            “I have your sandwiches-” Mia stopped dead in her tracks. “Oh, Zac.  That’s in our neighborhood.”

            She took a seat beside me and we watched the story unfold.

            “What you are seeing right now is what we believe to be an Anti-Returned protest.  Protesters gathered to express their rage regarding the debt caused by treating the Returned. The anti-riot force team was called when they formed a human barrier around the clinic refusing to allow anyone in for their treatment.” The news anchor explained as the scene continues to unfold. 

            “After trying to disband the protest things took a violent turn as the protesters resisted police force. The anti-riot force team was called in shortly after things escalated to a full-on riot.”

            The police threw cans of what looked like tear gas out into the crowd. Mia gasped in horror as a police officer hit a protester hard across the face with his billy club. It looked like a scene from a third world country. My stomach lurched and I lost my appetite _. How far were the ARA and their supporters willing to go? Until we all kill each other?_ I glanced over at my wife who is obviously shaken that this was going on just two blocks away. I pulled her close to me.

            “Babe, it’s going to be ok.”  I ran my hands through her long dark hair. “This will all blow over once the new treatment is perfected. Then we will never have to worry about another shortage.”

            “Do you think it’s true?  That the reserve is running low this time?” She asked as she laid her head against my chest.       

            “I think there could be a shortage. Things have never been this bad before.” I said contemplating the situation. “But the head of the Centers for Disease Control said the synthetic protein needed for the new treatment should be completed before the reserve runs out.”

            She tucked her legs up and snuggled closer to me. I shifted myself down into the corner of the couch and we fell asleep together.

 

            “Zac! Wake up! We’re going to be late for the dinner.” Mia shook me hard to wake me up. 

            I groaned and hunkered down further into the couch. It normally took nothing short of a stick of dynamite to wake me up before I was ready.

            She leaned down to my ear and whispered, “There will be cupcakes and brownies.”

            That got me to come around real quick. Bless this woman who knew me so well. I headed to the shower while Mia ran around in her underwear doing her makeup and hair. I got distracted for a brief moment checking her out in her lacey panties. We met eyes and she gave me that look. The one all women gave you when they wanted you to hurry up, so I shed my clothes and hopped in the shower. I don’t take long to shower and get ready. By the time I was done Mia had put the finishing touches on her hair and we headed out to the dinner cupcakes in tote.

 

            Dinner was delicious. Dani and Taylor were both great cooks and the menu tonight was impressive: Grilled hearts of romaine, chicken Alfredo, lasagna rolls, zucchini stuffed with Ricotta, prosciutto wrapped asparagus, and enough dessert to make anyone diabetic. They still hadn’t announced why they had us all over for dinner yet. Our youngest brother, Mac, had flown in from L.A. There seemed to be some tension between the two of them. I noticed that they kept looking back and forth at one another with troubled expressions. I hoped they were not going to announce a divorce, cancer or something really bad along those lines.

            I was working on my 4th cupcake and second bowl of banana pudding, trying to ignore Dad going on about how the Returned are no longer human when Taylor slammed his hands down against the table. Everyone stopped chatting or taking bites of dessert and stares at him.  His face looked just like it did at church earlier that morning. I swallowed hard and waited for an explanation with the others.

            “What if you loved someone who was returned, Dad, would you still think they weren’t human?” His voice was raised but he really isn’t shouting.

            “That’s absurd. Our family and all our friends have not been tainted by the mark of the beast.” Dad retorted. “Don’t tell me you have become a sympathizer.”

            “You’re wrong. Someone in this family is Returned.” Taylor said evenly though his face was twisted with anger. 

            We all gasped collectively. _Had my brother been Returned?_ That just didn’t make any sense to me. Between the long hours in the studio and months together on tour, I never once suspected that Tay had the disease. Something wasn’t adding up. It was Mom who finally broke the silence.

            “What do you mean someone in this family, Jordan?” Mom looked like she was about to start crying. 

            “Four years ago.” He started to tear up but he managed to compose himself. “Four years ago Jonah came down with a high fever after a play date. After we couldn’t get it down we took him straight to the hospital. We almost didn’t make it in time. Jonah is Returned.” 

            I tried to find something to say but I was struck speechless. Mom burst into tears like Taylor had just informed her Jonah had died. Everyone started talking at once. Jonah was sitting slumped over in his seat next to his father with his head down. Dad silenced us all by standing up and pounding the table as well, like father like son.

            “Jordan, how could you be so careless as a father?!” He demanded. “God gave you that child after years of praying, and you allow this to happen! I thought I raised you to be a decent father!” 


	3. Bonds That Break

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> POV: Taylor's  
> Taylor learns who will stand by him in his time of need, and in light of a new event, it will definitely need all the help he can get.

“First, don’t you dare talk about my son like he’s broken.” All the anger and pretending over the last 4 years started to raise up in my throat. “Secondly, I am a fantastic father.”

            Dad opened his mouth to object but Mom cut him off quickly.

            “Will the both of you just shut up?!” She demanded. “Jordan, tell us how this happened.”

            My dad and I both sat down though we still glared at each other over the top of mom’s head. 

            “Jonah was at a playdate with one of his teammates from soccer,” I explained. “He said that they made a pact to be blood brothers. If I had known—I would have never allowed him to go over there by himself.” 

            No matter how many times Danielle told me it was not my fault, as Jonah’s father I still felt responsible. I felt like I let him down then and I felt the same way now. There was n’t a single day since he was Returned that I have not prayed to God that it was me and not him. I would have given anything to change places with him. I failed him once as a father and lived every day to make sure I didn’t fail him again.

            Jonah shifted in his seat so he was closer to his mother. Dani wrapped a protective arm around our son. I could tell he was upset by how things were playing out but he was too brave to cry in front of everyone. 

            “By the time he got home, he started running the fever.” I continued.  “When we couldn’t get it down, he finally told us what happened and we rushed him to Southside because it has the best Returned unit in Tulsa.” 

            “We barely made it in time,” Dani added. “We are so blessed that we did and with the help of the treatment he’s still the same Jonah we know and love.” She snuggled him to her as she kissed the top of his head. 

            “The reason we wanted to have this dinner is.” I got choked up. “The reserve for the injection is starting to run dangerously low. There is a chance it will run out before the synthetic protein is developed.” 

            “We have contacts at several Returned Clinics and at Southside that, for a price, have been able to provide us with extra treatments. As the shortage gets worse the price is starting to skyrocket. There may come a time when we may not be able to afford Jonah’s treatment.  We may need your help.” 

            “Absolutely not,”  Dad said automatically. “I am not going to endorse standing in the way of God’s will. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, Jordan. This is your punishment for not taking care of the child God blessed you with. Your mother and I are not going to get involved in this.” 

Mom whipped around in her chair to face him. “As for the rest of my adult children I hope you will do what is right in the eyes of the Lord.” 

            “Walker, please.” My mom began to plead with him. “He is our grandson.  Please don’t do this!”

            “Diana, we’ll talk more about this at home.” He took her by the arm. “Come on Zoe.”  

            The 3 of them got up to leave. Mom stopped and kissed the top of Jonah’s head as she passed by his seat. She looked helplessly at me with tears in her eyes but didn't say a word. Dad reached to touch Jonah’s shoulder but stopped himself and continued to usher my mom and youngest sister out of my house. My chest felt tight like I had a vice strapped around me slowly squeezing me. I guessed I always thought that once Dad knew the truth, once he experienced the condition firsthand, once he loved someone Returned, that he would change. But my father’s prejudices ran much deeper than I ever could have imagined. I surveyed the rest of my family.  Zac and his wife both looked very apologetic. Ike and his wife, Jessica and her husband refused to even look at me. Mac and Avery exchanged glances.

            “If there is anyone who feels the same way Dad does, you need to leave now.” I spat the words out as if they taste as bitter as they felt. “There is no room at my table for you.” 

            The invisible vice around my chest tightened again. I held on to the back of my chair to steady myself because I felt like I was about to shake to pieces. Ike and his wife gathered their children and made their way towards the door. Jessica got up hoisting Jacob onto her shoulder and her husband followed suit.  She paused just as she walks by me.

            “I—I have to think about-” Her voice was barely above a whisper with just a hint of regret.  I raised a hand to cut her off and she took her family and left. 

            I finally looked up at my remaining family. Zac and Mia and Avery, and Mac were the only ones who decided to stand by me, by my son, during this very difficult time.  Mac was the first to speak.

            “What Dad said, it’s all bullshit.”  Mac was not one to mince words. “He’ll come around eventually and if not, then as hard as it sounds, we move on without him.”

            “Mac is right,” Avery interjected. “What about Christ’s unconditional love?  Dad’s mind has been polluted by the ARA and the church. We’re not going to be so easily swayed.” 

            “Tay, your family has our full support,”  Zac said reaching across the table and taking his wife’s hand.

            Mia nodded in agreement. “We will do whatever we can to help keep Jonah safe.”

            “I’ve already texted my roommates back in L.A. to let them know I’m going to be staying here for a few months because of a family emergency. As long as you don’t mind feeding me while I’m here. I’m a growing boy after all.” Mac grinned.

            “Of course,”  Dani said with a bit of a laugh. “You can stay as long as you want.” 

            I walked Zac, his wife, and Avery to the door. We exchanged hugs and I thanked them again for going against the rest of our family. I headed back towards the dining room to find Jonah was sitting at the table alone.

            “Where’d your mom and uncle Mac go?” I asked sitting down next to him. 

            “They went to set up the guest bedroom.” He said looking down at his hands. “Dad, why is Papa so mad at me? I didn’t mean to get sick.”

            “Papa isn’t mad at you, champ. He’s mad at the virus.”  I rubbed his back trying to comfort him. “Your Papa and Nana both love you.”

            His bravery began to wear off.  His blue eyes were full of tears as he looked up at me.

            “Then why didn’t he say goodbye?”  He barely got his words out before he finally broke down.

            The tightness in my chest almost crushed me as I held my son as he sobbed. I wished I could join him but I had to be his safety net right now. I drew my arms around him tight.

            “Papa has been lied to, Jonah.” I slowly rocked him back and forth in my arms.  “But Papa will realize the truth soon. You’ll see.” 

            I sat there with my head rested on top of Jonah’s head rocking him for at least half an hour until he started to calm down. When I opened my eyes Danielle was standing in the doorway watching us. The wetness on her cheeks told me she had been crying too. I held an arm out to her and she joined our embrace. She only gave herself a few minutes before she wiped her cheeks and told Jonah that he needed to go with her to get ready for bed. My Dani is one tough woman. I smiled as I watched them head down the hall together.

 

            We all slept in the next morning. I called Zac to let him know it will be a while before I could go back to the studio. If I could ever go back to working with my brothers. I doubt I could have been in the same room with Isaac right then without punching him in the face. It was quarter to eleven and my body was in desperate need of coffee. 

            I was pouring water into the coffee pot when I heard a  knock on our back door that startled me. A gap in the blinds told me it’s my youngest sister, Zoe. She kept looking over her shoulder like she’s worried someone had followed her.

            As soon as I opened the door she flew into my arms almost dropping a small package.

            “Tay, I’m so sorry.” She said into my shirt. “I had no choice but to go with them, but I didn’t want to.”

            “I know,” I replied breaking her hug. “What are you doing here? If Dad catches you out you’ll be in big trouble.”

            “I don’t have much time.” She explained. “I told him I was going to a friend’s house to for Bible study. He’ll call to make sure I’m there. I’m almost positive he will.”

            She pressed the small, surprisingly cold package into my hands.

            “A girl at my school, her mom just died and she had these left. I wanted Jonah to have them.” She wipes a tear from her eye.

            I opened the box to find 15 doses of treatment. Jonah had another 15 days of life thanks to my little sister. For the first time since last night, my chest didn’t feel as tight.

            “How could you afford these, Zoe?”  I’m shocked that a 16-year-old could have gotten a hold of them, let alone purchased them.

            “She cut me a deal because we’re friends and knows they’re for my nephew, plus I sold the promise ring Dad bought me.” She grinned. “I have to go now. Tell everyone I love them.”

            We hugged one more time before she ran around the corner of my house. I said a small prayer that she made it to her friend’s house before Dad called. Dani yawned as she entered the kitchen.

            “Who was at the door, babe?” She asked a getting a couple of mugs down for us. 

            “Zoe.  She brought these for Jonah.” I held up the tiny vials for Dani to see. “She hocked her promise ring to pay for them.”

            Dani stopped what she was doing and hurried over to get a closer look at them. 

            “Two, four, six, eight, ten, fifteen!” She exclaimed. “That’s more than we have ever been able to get at one time.” 

            “Why don’t you finish making us coffee and I will go put these with the rest?” I suggested as I leaned down and kissed her. 

            She smiled and went about finishing her previous task. I grabbed my key ring off a small hook and unlocked our garage door. Ever since we had been trying to stockpile treatment for Jonah we had made sure this door was always locked. I fished for the next key to unlock a squat floor freezer. Inside was mostly empty but we wanted to make sure Jonah’s stockpile was extra safe. With Zoe’s contribution, we now had 98 days’ worth of treatment. Sometimes when I  couldn’t sleep I come in here at night and I’d count them until can hardly hold my eyes open. A few times I had caught Dani doing the same thing. As I situated the new vials into the freezer I heard the muffled sounds of the TV followed by the sound of glass breaking. 

            Dani stood frozen with her hand over her mouth looking up at the TV. Southside Hospital was on the screen surrounded by dozens of police cars. A small crawler ran across the bottom read 20 confirmed dead 3 in critical condition. It cut back to the sober face of a reporter.

            “What we just saw was Southside Hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma that was hit the hardest during the nation’s largest hate crime against those Returned. Last night groups of mask vigilantes stormed three hospitals in Oklahoma, targeting those with the largest Returned Units, overpowered security and brutally murdered the patients in the Returned Unit.” 

            It cut to similar scenes in Oklahoma City and Norman. My blood ran cold. I knew in my heart of hearts that the ARA was behind this mass murder. They were the only ones hateful and loathsome enough to murder people in their hospital beds. 

            “We’re getting an update on the death tolls as we speak.  Southside: 25 Returned confirmed dead, 23 adults, and 2 children. The security guard and doctor who bravely tried to stop the act have succumbed to their injuries bringing the death toll to 27. The nurse who used her body to shield to a child is still in critical condition. Oklahoma City Medical: 10 Returned confirmed dead, 8 adults, and 2 children.”

            Dani cut the TV off before we heard any more. She was visibly shaken and I didn’t blame her. We always knew there would come a time when we would have to take our son and run, but it’s always seemed like it would be in the distance future. But with the way things are started to shape up that time was coming sooner than we originally thought and I knew we had to stay a little bit longer to get more treatments for Jonah. 


	4. Bittersweet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> POV: Zac
> 
> Zac receives the most bittersweet news imaginable.

                I was so relieved to get home and away from all my family drama. Things had never been so bad that they split our family down the middle. I thought there for a moment Taylor and Dad were going to kill each other. Poor Mom was forced to choose between her husband and her son, it was horrible. The whole thing had given me a massive headache. I just wanted to crawl into bed with my wife and sleep until all this blew over. But I didn't regret my decision to stand by Taylor and his family because I knew he would have done the same for me.

            I went straight to our bedroom and stripped down to my boxers and wife beater while Mia put the leftover cupcakes in the fridge. She came in just as I was turning down our covers with a little vial in her hand. It was time for our nightly routine. I opened our bedside table and fumbled for a fresh pair of gloves. Mia was deathly afraid of needles so I gave her the treatment every night before bed.

            “You know, we had our chance tonight,”  I said as I loaded the vial into the clean syringe.  “We could have told them the truth.”

            “And where did the truth get Taylor?” Mia replied pulling her dress over her head. “Half his family, blood relatives, turned their backs on him. I don’t think they would have felt any differently towards me.”

            I frowned at the point she made. “It may not have changed the way things went down but maybe Taylor could help us get extra treatments too. Sounds like he has a lot of connections.”

            “Are you so sure about that?”  Mia said as she slip on my old ‘Refresh’ t-shirt.  “We would be competition for him.”

            “Competition?” I’m afraid I didn’t know what she was getting at.

            “He wants as many extra doses of treatment for Jonah as he can get.”  She explained and propped her foot up on my knee. “If suddenly you have his connections, that’s less treatment for Jonah.”

            “Nah, Taylor would help.” I tapped the vial to make sure there are no air bubbles.  “That’s not how he operates.”

            “Desperation makes people do things they would never dream of doing.” She said softly.

            I rubbed her smooth leg so she would relax for me. Feeling her muscles relax I quickly pushed the needle in as she turned her head. I pressed the syringe down and watched the injection disappear into her. Sometimes was hard for me to believe that her life depended on just a few milliliters of fluid every day. I covered the tip of the syringe with a cotton ball before I slid it out. Practice had made me an expert and she didn’t even flinch. Once I had made sure she was no longer bleeding I shed my gloves and disposed of the supplies in our hazardous waste container. 

            A large portion of my money went towards keeping Mia’s condition from my family. I paid a hefty amount of money to have her background check altered so we could get married.  Another large sum went to having her treatments discreetly delivered so she was never seen at a Returned clinic. Then there was the hazardous waste that had to be disposed of properly every month. It was a small sacrifice I made because I could not image my life without her. She was worth every cent to me. If she wanted to continue this deception with my family I was not about to deny her. 

            Mia smiled and leaned down to kiss me.

            “You could be a nurse you know that?” She teased me. “That is if this whole rock star thing doesn’t pan out.” 

            “Yeah, yeah.” I laughed pulling her down so she was straddling me. “You just want to see me in a sexy nurse outfit.” 

            Her lips stifled my laughter and I wrapped my arms around her waist. She broke away from our kiss long enough to pull my t-shirt off her small frame. I reached over and flipped the lamp off before I rolled us over onto our side. This was exactly what I needed to take my mind off my family’s problems. 

 

            Taylor called out of work the next day and I didn’t blame him. It was awkward it just being me and Ike, though. I could feel the tension between us. We both wanted to bring up the dinner last night but neither of us knew how to. Finally, things came to a head when we get done laying down the vocals for a new song we had been working on. I suggested we lay down the vocals one more time to make sure we’re happy with what we captured first and it set Isaac off.  

            “I don’t see why we have to do it again.” He said raising his voice slightly. “It’s perfect right now. We have to add Taylor’s vocals in later, so why create extra work?”

            “If Taylor were here he would agree that we should get at least one more take.”  I tried not to raise my voice in return but Isaac was really pushing me today. 

            “I know what you think, but you’re wrong.” Isaac’s temper was getting the better of him and he was full on yelling at me. “If Taylor wants it done a certain way he should have his ass in the studio.”

            “Wow, Ike. Really?” I was in total disbelief right then. “Half our family, including you, left him high and dry when he asked for help. You don’t think he needs a little time to wrap his head around that?”

            He shifted a little in his chair and looked down at his hands. I made him feel uncomfortable calling him out like that but someone needed too. This taking sides thing was utter bullshit and the sooner we could patch things up the better it would be for everyone involved.

            He let out a long sigh.  “Zac, you’re not a father. There’s no way for you to understand the decision I made nor how difficult it was for me. If I only had myself to worry about I would have chosen differently. But I have my kids and Sarah to think about.”

            “Garett is going through a biting phase right now. If they were alone for just a few seconds, that’s all it would take. And Sarah is very devoted to her beliefs that the Returned should live separately from normal society. I understand where Taylor is coming from because I would do anything to protect my family too. One day when you have a family you’ll understand.”

            I know Ike didn’t mean to sound condescending, but he came across that way.  Mia was my family and I knew exactly what it was like to protect someone you loved dearly. 

            “I have a family Ike, Mia,”  I said defensively.

            He shook his head. “It’s different when you have kids. Kids make everything different.” 

            After that, I dropped the subject and finally convinced Isaac to run our vocals one more time. I made sure to tell him he was right that the previous track is definitely the one we should go with. He didn’t rub it in but he gave me his ‘I was right and you were wrong’ smile.  We decided to take a break and turned on the TV. Isaac flipped indecisively through the channels.  Something caught my eye and I made Isaac flip back a few channels to our local news. 

            Southside Medical was on the screen with tons to police cars and angry protesters. The news anchor explained the attack on it and two other hospitals during the night. They wiped out the entire Returned wards at each one. Among the dead were 8 children. I was angry but mostly I was worried about Amelia. With this kind of hostility brewing, it was only going to be a matter of time before everyone found out. I told Ike that I was going to check in with Taylor after seeing the news but really I called Mia. She normally watched with news around this time every day. I knew she would be shaken up and I wanted to reassure that everything would be ok. The phone rang for about a minute or so then went to our voicemail. It was odd that she’s not answering. I tried on her cell just incase she had to step out for something.  Still nothing but voice mail.  I decided to call Taylor, after all, to see if he caught the news.

            “Hey, Zac.”

            “Hey Tay, um have you seen the news today?” I tried to tread carefully in case I was breaking the news to him.

            He let out a harsh sigh. “Yeah, we did.  It’s getting worse every day it seems. We might have to take Jonah and leave town for a while.”

            “Where would you go?” 

            “Not too far, because we’d have to stay in contact with our connections and get Jonah his monthly supply. We might have to look into a place outside the city.”

            “Mia and I have a condo about an hour outside the city. If that day comes we’ll head that way.” I reassured him. “Everything is in Mia’s maiden name so it would be hard to find you out there.”

            “Let’s pray that day never comes,” Taylor was always the optimist.  “And the CDC finishes the synthetic treatment before the reserve runs out.”

            We talked a few minutes after. He told me about Zoe bringing some vials over early.  Part of me was jealous. Mia only had 3 days above her monthly supply issued each month by the government at the clinics. I had no idea who to contact or where to turn to get her anymore either. My jealousy turned to anger. Things had always come so easily for him his whole life. I shook my head to clear my thoughts. It was wrong of me to resent Taylor when I knew he would give anyone the shirt off his own back. He didn’t know about Mia and I am sure if he did he would do anything to help us too. I ended the call before those negative feelings creep back over me. 

           

            I dialed Mia on the way home from work but I still didn’t get an answer. At this point, I was very worried that something had happened. I managed to cut my time in half by going a little over the speed limit and dangerously cutting someone off. My heart sunk to my stomach when I pulled into our drive and saw her car parked in the driveway. I jump out of the car and hurry up the walkway. The door was unlocked and I felt myself start to panic. 

            “Mia?” I called out for her. The house was so silent I could have heard a pin drop. I moved quietly through our living room listening intently for sounds of Mia or an intruder.  Nothing seemed out of place which made the situation eerier. “Mia, baby are you home?”

            I turned slowly and headed down our hallway towards our bedroom. When I got closer to our door I heard the faint sounds of crying. Thinking the worse, I threw open our bedroom door.  The crying was coming from our en-suite bathroom. I eased the door open slowly so I didn’t startle her. 

            Mia was crumbled in the floor in a tight little ball. I automatically dropped to my knees beside her.

            “Mia, baby! What wrong?  Are you hurt?” I was talking a million miles a minute. “Do I need to call an ambulance? Baby, tell me what’s wrong.” 

            I reached out to touch her but she recoiled away from me. 

            “Leave me alone Zac!” She said through sobs. “Just leave me alone!”

            For a minute I thought her treatment didn’t work and I checked her for a fever but she was her normal temperature. I stroked her head and trying to claim her down.

            “Baby please, tell me what’s wrong,” I repeated slowly over and over again. 

            Gradually her breathing slowed and her sobs started to subside. She sats up slowly. I could see her had hands are clenched around something but I could tell what it was because her hands are in the way. I reached out and rubbed her arm gently. She scooted closer to me and laid her head on my shoulder.

            “I, I should be happy.” She whispered. “I should be the happiest woman on earth. But I’m not, I’m so scared Zac.”

            I wondered if the pressure to hide her condition from my family and the increased violence towards the Returned had finally taken its toll on her. I pulled her closer to me as I wrapped my arms around her. 

            “It’s ok baby. I got you.” I rocked her slowly. “I not going to let anything happen to you.  I promise.”

            What I said set her off.  She pushed herself away from me.

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep! You act like you have this under control but you don’t. No one has this under control!” She dropped what she was holding so she could bury her face in her hands.  

            I looked down at a narrow plastic wand. My heart skipped a beat as I picked it up. Mia had been clutching a pregnancy test. A positive pregnancy test by the looks of it. I fell back on my butt. The greatest sense of joy and pride washed over me like a tidal wave. 

            “We’re having a baby.” I pulled my wife into my arms and kiss her. “You’re pregnant!  Baby, that’s wonderful news.” I kissed her right as she was about to say something. 

            She pulled away from me again. Her face was anything but that of a happy first-time mom. 

            “Zac, the world is on the verge of another zombie outbreak. You forget that I straddle the line between being human,” She choked down her tears. “And being a monster. If the reserve runs out you’ll lose me. You’ll lose me and…” Tears overpowered her again.

            But I knew what she was trying to tell me. If the reserve ran out I lose both her and the baby. We sat huddled together in our bathroom floor in silence after that. I ran my hand through Mia’s hair trying to comfort her on what should have been the happiest moments of our lives.  The only thing that was running through my head is what Isaac told me earlier. Kids make everything different. 


	5. Gunfire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> POV Taylor
> 
> After an altercation, Taylor and Mac have to bury a body.

It had been a few days since Zoe brought the treatments for Jonah and it had been really uneventful. I thought for sure Mom would find a way to reach out to us somehow. Dad must have monitored her or at least that was what I kept telling myself. His abandonment, as painful as it was, I could live with. Mom was a different story. When running errands, I had caught myself in route to their house a few times, but I always changed course before I got there. I didn’t want to make things any harder for her and Zoe. 

            Now I was headed to one of my connections. He called last night to let me know he got in a new supply and he had 8 treatments set aside for me. I steered my way through a nearby ATM.   I sighed as I entered my pin number. Each vial of treatment was going to cost me about $400 which was twice what I had paid just weeks ago. I withdrew the funds and made my way to the other side of town. We always met in a crowded area, so we didn’t stick out. Right then my nerves were in overdrive and I sure could have used a cigarette, but I gave up that habit to help fund additional treatments for Jonah.  

            The drive took about 20 minutes. I straightened my beanie and slipped on my aviators before I glanced into the rear-view mirror. When I was satisfied with my appearance I parked my car and hopped out in front of The Market. The Market was a small art district in downtown Tulsa.  People rented shops or booths and sold their goods, everything from art to pottery to organic food to fancy homemade soaps. Street musicians crowded the walkways trying to panhandle. It was a hipsters paradise so I went unnoticed. 

            I glanced at my watch. Having about 10 minutes to kill, I walked over to a food vendor selling fancy gourmet doughnuts. Jonah loved their S’mores doughnuts so I grabbed a few for him and a couple of maple bacon ones for myself.  After that, I headed over to the fountain in the center to the Market, sat and waited. I decided to eat a doughnut in the meantime.

            “That doughnut looks really good.” Remarked a dark headed man who sat down next to me. “I hope they taste as good as their price tag.”

            “They are a little overpriced, but they are very tasty,” I answered as I slip an envelope with over $3,000 into his jacket pocket. 

            “Do you have an extra one your willing to part with?” He asked raising his eyebrow slightly. 

            I held the bag out to him. As he reached in to get a doughnut I felt the familiar weight of treatment deposited in its place. Relief washed over me as soon as our exchange was complete. 

            “Hope you enjoy the doughnut.” 

            I didn’t wait around to exchange pleasantries either. The treatment has to be kept at a cool temperature, so I had to get it into the freezer ASAP. 

 

            On the way home, I drove by the hospital. I realized that was a big mistake instantly. The police had the entrance barricaded off only allowing ambulances in. Protesters from the ARA were gathered all around the barricades trying to push forward but another group of protesters was in their way. The United Returned Coalition showed up the day in response to the ARA.  Neither were doing any good besides holding up traffic. After creeping along for 15 minutes I managed to get past the hospital and back to normal speed. 

            I was home in under 5 minutes. It wasn’t until I was halfway up the walk when I realized our front door in open. I froze and surveyed the area quickly. There was no other car in our driveway or parked in front of our house to indicate company. Instantly I knew something was wrong. I peered around the doorway. Our front door opened into our living room.  The archway exiting our living room lined up perfectly with the doorway leading into our kitchen and I saw everything to the right of our kitchen island. I saw Dani crouched down on the floor clutching Jonah protectively, she was pleading with someone I couldn’t see. I heard what sounded like two people scuffling. I moved as quietly and quickly as possible over to our bookcase. Dani spotted me, but I held up a finger up to keep her from blowing my cover. I reached for what looked a book but was really a cleverly disguised gun safe. 

            I charged into the kitchen and found Mac struggling against a man who was dressed like a cable technician. They were both fighting to get control of a gun. 

            “Dad!!” Jonah yelled and both Mac and the unknown man turned in my direction.

            “Oh, Shit!” The stranger fought harder, but Mac had him by about 30 pounds making it difficult to overpower him.

            “Drop your weapon and get your fucking hands off my brother!” I warned. 

            The guy managed to surprise Mac with an elbow to the face and knocked him back on to the floor. Before the intruder could a good grip on his gun I fired. Dani had just enough time to bury our sons face into her shoulder. I gave him a fair warning and now he was lying dead on my kitchen floor. My knees buckled under me. I had been taught that when you fire a gun you had to mean it because there was no going back. What they didn’t prepare you for was the emotional side effect of ending someone’s life. Suddenly everything sounded like it’s underwater and the room was way too bright. Then I was falling.

            I woke up to Dani patting my face with a cold rag. 

            “Dani!” I sat up too quickly and the room started to dance. “Are you and Jonah alright?  Oh god, what about Mac?” 

            “We’re pretty shaken up. Mac has a broken nose and some bruises, but he’ll live.” Dani wrapped an arm around me to help me steady myself. “Jonah is with him now.”

            I embraced my wife and I thought about how incomplete my life would be without her and it scared me shitless. There’s no way could I ever make it on my own.

            “Tell me everything that happened.” 

            “Mac was the one who answered the door. I was helping Jonah with his homeschooling at the table.” She began. 

            “There was a guy who looked like he was from our cable company, said he was doing routine maintenance when he detected a problem. It sounded legit, so Mac let him in.”     

            Dani paused, and tears started to collect in her eyes. “Things got weird right after that. He demanded to know who was Returned. Luckily, Mac thinks quickly on his feet. He told the man he was Returned, that’s when he pulled the gun and they got into it.” 

            I took a moment to thank God for my younger brother who was willing to die that day to protect my wife and son. I could work a million lifetimes and would never be able to repay him.

            Dani started to go into shock. “Taylor I was so stupid. So stupid! How could I be so stupid?! My maternal instincts should have warned me something was wrong.” She broke down into sobs and I pulled her close to me.

            “Danielle, no one is prepared for something like this. This guy covered all of his bases. If I were here, I would have let him in too.” I tried to comfort her the best I could, but she needed a good cry to help deal with that emotional trauma. 

            Once she had a better grasp on things we decided what we’re going to do next. 

            “Do we call the police?”

            “No, they might start asking questions.  We don’t want to blow our cover.  We’re going to have to dispose of the body.”

            “Our neighbors were at work so I don’t think anyone heard the gunshot,” Dani said helping me to my feet. “So that is definitely to our advantage. How are we going to dispose of the body?”

            “Well, first we need to get this mess cleaned up,” I said surveying our breakfast nook. It was splattered with grey matter that looked like chunks of cauliflower in blood. 

            I took the shower curtain down from our guest bathroom. We donned gloves and with Mac’s help managed to get the fake tech onto the shower curtain. His eyes were fixed into a wide glossy stare and I was thankful when Dani quickly closed them. I searched his pockets and found a wallet. His ID said his name was Marcus Whittaker and among his business cards was one for the ARA. Apparently, the Anti-Returned Alliance was no longer content slaying the Returned in hospital beds. Now they were hunting them down in their own homes.  But how did they know about Jonah?  He was not in the public databases.  I got a very sick feeling in my stomach.  Dad wouldn’t turn Jonah in, would he?  Pondering this for a moment, I couldn’t come to a conclusion.  I decided to focus on the task at hand.

            “Maybe, this guy had been following me,”  I suggested. 

            Dani thought for a moment.  “No, because he wouldn’t have beat you home if he was following you.  You don’t think your Dad said something in order to keep from being kicked out of the church?” 

            Great, I was not the only one thinking it could have been Dad. 

            “Not that I don’t care, but he’s dead now.  Dead on your kitchen floor.” Mac piped in.  “What are we going to do?  Throw him in the lake?”

            “There’s no guarantee that ol’ boy here will stay down,”  I explained.  “We need to make sure he’ll never turn up again.”

            “I have an idea,”  Dani said over her shoulder as she scrubbed the floor with straight bleach.  “You’re not going to like it though.”

            “Go on Danielle.”

            “Well, no one goes out to the MOE house anymore.  The lot has a few acres with some wooded areas.  There’s only one house nearby and it’s vacant too.  Sounds like the perfect place to bury a body.”

            She was right. I was not keen on the idea of burying a body in the yard of my childhood home but it was the best and safest option we had available. 

            “Sounds like a plan to me.  Mac?” 

            “I have no objections.  I just want to get this dude out of the house and his brains cleaned up.”  Mac answered looking rather green.

            By now the sun has long been set and we had the cover of darkness on our side.  We decided it is best to leave Dani and Jonah behind because too many people on the lot in the middle of the night would have been a red flag.  I went through the house and made sure all the doors and windows were locked.  Meanwhile, Mac backed up his SUV to our back door.  We did our best to bundle the fake tech up in the shower curtain before duck taping layers of trash bags around his upper and lower body to ensure we didn’t leave any blood trails.  Dani held the door open for us as we hoisted the body up and headed out the back door.  Mac took a few steps and we hear the sickening sound of what can only be a skull fragment being crushed under his feet.  He swayed for a moment looking greener than before. 

            “Hey, hey, hey.  Don’t lose it now, buddy.  You made it this far.  You got this, Mac.”  I tried to reassure him despite the lurching of my own stomach. 

            “Tay, when I said I would help you move a body when we were kids I never thought I would actually have to help you move a body.”  He grimaced and continued on out the kitchen door to his SUV. 

           

            The drive was short and we rode in silence.  It wasn’t until we have parked way behind our old house that I spoke.  

            “Mac.”  I began but I was lost for words.  How could I ever put into words how grateful I was for what he did for my family today? 

            “Bro, you don’t have to say anything.”  He said looking out into the darkness beyond the driver’s side window. 

            “Yeah, I do.  Mac, if it weren’t for you Jonah and Dani could be dead now.”  I got a little emotional but tried to keep it concealed because Mac wasn’t the sentimental type.  “You could have died but you protected them anyway.  Thank you.” 

            Mac shrugged keeping up with his tough guy attitude.  “I didn’t do anything you wouldn’t have done for me.”

            “If you change your mind about sticking with us, if it gets to be to be too much for you,” I wanted to give him an out now because I had no idea how bad things might get in the future after dealing with this.

            He snapped his head towards me.  “Taylor, you don’t back out on family no matter how hard it gets.”

            With that, we stepped out into the night to bury a body in the darkest corner of our property with hopes of it never being found. 


	6. Deceptions Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mia convinces Zac to do the unthinkable.

The next day I didn’t show up at the studio.  I could tell by the constant buzzing from my cell phone that Isaac was none too pleased with my decision or the fact that I neglected to call him.  I watched it dance across my bedside table periodically as Mia slept cuddled up on my chest.  Last night was hard and it took her hours to finally fall asleep so I wasn’t about to risk the chance of waking her.  Plus, I just couldn’t muster a fuck to give at the moment. 

            I kept trying to work out a plan that would keep Mia safe but try as I might, I couldn’t rationalize a way to work it out.  Amelia kept insisting that we keep her secret from my family.  Her own family abandoned her after she opened up to them about her medical condition.  It devastated her.  Our family was the only family she had now and she was desperately trying to hold on to this illusion for as long as possible.  But I just wished she would let me tell Taylor what is going on.  We got into a big fight about it last night. 

            “Mia, I just don’t understand why we can’t tell Taylor!”  I demanded.  “I keep trying to tell you that he will help us!”

            “Well, your family doesn’t really have a great track record right now when it comes to helping each other out!”  She retorted as she turned her back to me. 

            She took a deep breath and paused.  “Zac, I, it’s not that I don’t want to tell them.  I’m just not ready to go through that all over again.  Please, just not yet.”  She said just barely over a whisper. 

            I immediately felt like such an asshole after that.  So I decided to stop pushing and let her decide when or if she was going to tell them she was Returned too.  We had more important things to worry about now that Mia was pregnant than to fret about how my family would handle having another Returned relative.

            My phone started inching its way across the nightstand again.  I rolled my eyes and turned to look at my wife.  I kissed her gently on the forehead before turning back toward my cell phone which was totally blowing up at this point.  Isaac apparently wasn’t going to stop calling me until he had the chance to properly rip me a new one.  He was now ringing my phone over and over again.  At this point, I was getting annoyed and didn’t want to risk him calling the house and waking Mia so I answered the phone. 

            “Look, Ike, I really don’t need to hear you bitch at me right now.”  I hissed through clenched teeth trying not to wake my wife.

            “Zac, it’s Tay.”

            There was a sound in his voice that automatically clued me in on some kind of trouble.  He had always been so transparent, my brother.  His face and voice gave him away every time.  Sensing the urgency I gently shifted Mia off my chest so I could sit up.

            “Tay, what’s happened? Is Jonah alright?” 

            “I, um, I.” He stumbled over his words which really made me begin to worry.  Normal he was quite the silver-tongued individual.  “I killed someone.”  He finally whispered into the receiver. 

            “You what?!”  I half shouted half whispered in response.  “Did you just say you killed someone?!”

            My head was really reeling now and I didn’t think I could handle any more shocking revelations from my family.   I was totally convinced that they had a secret contest going for who could drive me crazy first.  So far Taylor was in the lead. 

            “Someone from the ARA I’m sure of it.”  He explained.  “He disguised himself as a cable tech and attacked Mac in front of Dani and Jonah.”

            “Holy fuck!  Dude, is Mac ok?  What about Dani and Jonah?”  I glanced over my shoulder to make sure I hadn’t wakened Mia as I quietly crept out of our bedroom and headed to the kitchen.

            “Everyone is fine thanks to Mac’s quick thinking.  The guy knew someone at our address was Returned he just didn’t know who.  And to make bad matters worse, I haven’t been able to figure out how he knew.”  Taylor continued.  “I paid the hospital a small fortune to keep them from reporting his registration to the public databases.”

            Fuck.  I also spent a small fortune trying to get Mia out of the public databases as well.  I opened the fridge and got a beer.  It was only 11:30 in the morning but I could tell I was going to need it.  I quickly popped it open and downed half the bottle.  The question at hand was how did the ARA know where we’re hiding? 

            “How do you think they know, Tay?”  I asked after another long swig from my bottle.  “Do you think they got access to the medical database?  That’s the only one that’s not public. Or do you think….”  I trailed off and take another big sip of my beer.  “Do you think Dad could have been involved?”

            “That seems to be the million dollar question, Zachary,”  Taylor replied as we speculated.  “I don’t know if Dad would really sink that low but then again I’m not certain about him at all anymore.”

            There was a long pause between us and I knew we were both mulling the same thing around in our minds.  Could our father have been the one to put a hit out on Jonah? Would our father really do something like that?  Taylor was the first to break the silence. 

            “By the way….We buried the guy at the MOE house.”  He said trying to be nonchalant.

            I just sat my empty beer bottle down and headed back to the fridge and popped open another.  My sanity was really starting to wear thin at this point. 

            “Well, that has tainted all my childhood memories,”  I said dryly as I tilt the beer back and take a long pull from the bottle.  “You, think you need to leave town?”

            If Taylor left the city Mia and I would be following suit.  He would definitely be the one to know when it got too dangerous.  I would kill to have the kind of connections he had. 

            “Not yet.  Probably within the next two weeks after we pick up a few more treatments.  So you need to be ready to roll by then.”  He explained.  “Speaking of treatments, I need a favor.”

            I polished off my second beer before I answer.  “Anything broham.” 

            “I’m a little worried to leave Dani and Jonah with Mac all banged up right now.  I have a pickup tomorrow afternoon.  Could you pick up the treatments for me?”  He asked hesitantly. 

            I told him, of course, I would pick up the treatments for him.  He gave me the details to meet up with his connection tomorrow afternoon.  Again feelings of resentment tried to wash over me as I repeated the information to make sure I had written it down correctly.  He filled me in on a few details about the faux cable man now buried at the MOE house before we hung up.  My mind was so busy I didn’t even hear Mia come into the kitchen doorway.  Her small presence startled me from my conflicting thoughts.

            “Morning babe,”  I said as I leaned down and kissed her cheek.  “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

            “What happened at Taylor’s?”  She asked me looking very concerned.

            I ran my hands through my hair and took a deep breath.  Her knees buckled and she used the doorframe to brace herself as I explained about the ARA intruder that Taylor shot last night. 

            “So, you’re going to pick up some more treatment for him tomorrow?”  Apparently, she had been listening in the hallway for most of the conversation. 

            “Yeah.  He’s arranged it for me to pick up the treatment for him.”  I reached to brush her cheek put she pushed my hand out of the way which was out of character for her. 

            “What’s wrong baby?”  I was still very worried about her emotional state after the way I found her yesterday. 

            “I need you to focus on the bigger picture, Zachary.”  She answered with mild frustration.  “This is our chance.”

            “Chance to do what?”  Her face had changed so suddenly.  It darkened without the slightest warning and it was frightening. 

            “You can be so dense sometimes!”  She let out a frustrated sigh.  “Let me break it down for you.  You go pick up the treatments and you tell Taylor they weren’t able to get the amount they promised.  Only a few so it doesn’t look suspicious.”

            I pulled away from her like she was made of fire.  She might as well slapped me across my face. I was so shocked by her proposal.  This was so out of her character for Amelia.  For a few seconds, all I could do was stare at her stunned. 

            “Amelia,” We seemed to have escalated to using each other’s full names at this point, “How could you suggest I steal from my brother? From Jonah?” 

            Her expression softened as she looked up at me.  She reached up and took my face in her hands and kissed me gently. 

            “Zac, I not ready to die yet.  I’m not ready to leave you or lose our baby.”  Her words were smooth and sweet as honey.  “If you were in Taylor’s position, would you honestly cut your child’s life short for another?”

            I frowned because I have asked myself that question many times since the dinner and I was ashamed of my answer.  If I had the extra treatments to keep Mia and the baby alive during the shortage, I would not share.  I could not sacrifice their lives for anyone, not even my family.  Her point was suddenly very clear.  Dani and Tay had such a hard time trying to conceive; he was their miracle baby.  Taylor would not sacrifice his son’s life either.  I shook my head to respond to her question. 

            “You see, what other choice do we have?”  She replied her voice still sweet and gentle.  “At least this way everybody wins.” 

            I nod my head before I leaned in and kissed her lips.

 

            The next day I picked up a wad of cash stuffed in a blank envelope from Taylor’s house.  I know I shouldn’t have looked inside but I wanted to know much Taylor was having to dish out to get extra doses.  I could not believe that this deal was going to set him back over 4,000 dollars.  A brief wave of guilt hit me but I cast it aside quickly when I thought of Mia and our baby.  Taylor was supposed to have 9 treatments but I planned on only bringing back 6 today. 

            This connection was located right in the middle of a shitstorm; Southside Hospital.  Luckily, the police have managed to subdue the crowd enough to open up the second entrance into the E.R. to allow civilians to drive in after passing a checkpoint.  I had to get out of the car for the police to search my vehicle and be patted down before I was allowed into the hospital.  I glanced around at the protesters while I waited.  The United Returned Coalition was working with the police to keep the dangerous and fanatic ARA supporters on the other side of the makeshift barrier they constructed around the hospital.  The URC was a group of Returned and their supporters fighting against the discrimination towards those who have been Returned.  They are the biggest threat to the ARA’s radical agenda.  I watched them stand there arms linked one right after the other on the other side of the barricade with hundreds of scared, misinformed, and angry people screamed obscenities and held signs with cruel messages.  Yet they stood there unyielding and I found myself envying them for their selflessness and willingness to help those they didn’t even know.  Once I was given the clearance I quickly headed towards the entrance to the ER. 

            I followed Taylor’s instructions, taking a long hallway off the main waiting room in the ER to the elevators.  Once the coast was clear I stepped into an empty elevator headed to the 3rd floor.  The pharmacy was on this floor.  I made sure to keep my head down allowing my thick mane of hair to help conceal my face.  When I turned the final corner before the pharmacy I noticed there was a doctor at the counter. Quickly I headed to the vending machines across from the counter.  I fumbled for a dollar bill and pretended to smooth it out until the doctor finally went on his way.  I quickly turned back to the counter. 

            A young pharmacy tech wearing way too much eyeliner and really bright scrubs leaned across the counter to make sure we were finally alone.  

            “Thought you weren’t going to show.”  She said in a low voice.  “Almost lost your goods.”

            “That damn checkpoint takes forever,”  I replied slightly annoyed as I slip the envelope across the way counter to her.  “Just hand over the goods.”

            “One sec.”  She walked towards the back thumbing through the envelope making sure all of her money is there, then disappeared for a few minutes. 

            I fought the urge to fidget because I didn’t want to look suspicious in case we were being watched. 

            She returned with a white paper bag that prescriptions normally come in rolled down tightly. 

            “Here you go.”  She said indifferently handing the bag across the counter to me. 

            Just as I was about to pull the bag away she grabbed my hand. 

            “Wait!  Your brother, is he Returned?”  She leaned forward and asked me quickly. 

            I nodded my head because I knew that was what Taylor would have done.

            “He needs to be careful.  When the ARA massacred the Returned Ward, they stole the data from the medical registry.  They now know where every Returned is in the city of Tulsa.  Be careful.  Now go because you look suspicious.”  She informed me quickly before letting go of my hand. 

            I wanted to go tearing out of the hospital to get back to Mia, but I had to physically will myself to walk slowly to not attract attention to myself.  Once I was able to get on the highway I took off like lightning.  Fumbling with the bag and I took out the four vials of treatment for Mia as I drove to Taylor’s. 

            I heard the sound of at least two bar locks and a chain lock before Dani opened the door. 

            We hugged and I told her I was so glad her and Jonah were alright.  I go through the motions of pleasantries until Taylor walked into the living room.

            Before he could even greet me well, I blurted out.  “Dad wasn’t involved.  It was the ARA.” 


	7. Redemption's Song

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> POV Taylor   
> Walker risks it all to warn Taylor of the ARA's heinous new plan.

            Zac’s straightforwardness left me speechless the moment I entered my living room.  I just looked at him as he stood there holding the package of Jonah’s treatment. 

            “The pharmacy tech warned me that the ARA stole the medical database,”  Zac explained rather drily.  “No amount of money will keep you hidden in the city now.” 

            I turned to my wife.  “Danielle, call Avery.  Tell her to grab a gun and as much ammunition as she can carry.  We’ll leave town by the end of the week.  Until then I need every good shot on hand.”

            “Taylor, they have your address,”  Zac said, not hiding his frustration.  “For all you know they are on the way now.” 

            “Zac has a point, Taylor,”  Dani spoke up.  “The condo is only an hour out of town.  Can’t we just come back to get more treatment?”

            “Once we leave town we need to lay low for a while,”  I explained opening our hall closet.  “The ARA will be on the looked out for us as long as we are in the city.  We don’t want to be spotted and lead them back to the condo.”  I grabbed two of my rifles and hand one to my wife and the other to Zac as I took Jonah’s treatment from him.  “If they show up here we should be able to hold them off them all this gun power.” 

            Dani looked nervously at Zac hoping that he would offer a different solution but he just looked at me and sighed.

            “He’s right Dani.  We need to stay out of the city for as long as possible because they will be trying to hunt us down.”  He said, checking the see if there was a bullet in the chamber. 

            “Alright.  I’ll go call her.”  She said glaring at me. 

            I grabbed her arm before she could turn away from me and pull her into my arms.  “You have got to trust me, babe.  I have spent many sleepless nights working things out.”

            She rested her head against my chest and nods. “Ok.  Make sure you get those into the freezer.”

            “About that,” Zac said slowly.  “They couldn’t get as many treatments as they promised.  It’s getting really risky to get larger amounts like that, and more expensive.”

            I peeked into the bag and counted only 5 vials as I swore under my breath.  I was really counting on 9 vials of treatment from this connection because my other sources were only able to come only able to get 2 or 3 this week.  But with the way things were going, I was not surprised. 

            “Now we definitely have to stay this week to try and make up for things,”  I said with a sigh. 

            “I’m going head over to my house to grab my girl and my guns.”  He said and put his hand on my shoulder.  “I’m sorry they couldn’t get more.” 

 

            “Did someone call a hit man?”  Avery said grinning ear to ear with her gun bag over one shoulder and an overnight on the other.  We are a family of a gun enthusiast and Avery was just as good a shot as Zac, maybe even better.  I felt much safer having the two of them here.  My other sister Jessica is the best shot in the family but I knew if I called her she would not come. 

            “Aunt Avie!”  Jonah squealed throwing his arms around her. 

            “Hey, champ.”  She said roughing up his hair.  “Holy crap!  What happened to Mac?!” 

            We collectively sighed before breaking the news of the intruder to her.  By the look on her face, I could tell that she was stunned and a little pissed that I hadn’t called her sooner. 

            “I’m so glad you’re ok, Mac.”  She pulled him in for a tight hug.  “We’ve been through too much together for you to check out on me now.”

            “Yeah, yeah.”  He said patting her on the back but his smile said that he was enjoying the attention.  What a ham, even in the middle of family drama. 

            “Jonah, why don’t we hook up our Xbox here in the living room?”  Avery said taking him by the hand running down the hall pulling him along laughing. 

            I smiled at the sound.  Jonah laughing was one of my most favorite noises in the world, and with all the tension and danger going on I hadn’t heard it as much lately.

            That night we went through each room making sure all the windows where locked and then locked the doors behind us fortifying the center of the house.  We only had access to our small guest bathroom that didn’t have a window, our living room, and kitchen.  Once the sun went down we pulled all our vehicles around into our backyard, drew the curtains shut and dimmed the lights.  From the street, you never would have guessed someone was home let alone armed and ready.  Jonah was nestled in the center of our living fast asleep lying next to my wife when we turned the news on to see if the CDC scientist were any closer to developing a stable synthetic treatment.

            “Chaos.  Pure chaos.  Those are the only words that can describe the scene outside the CDC in Atlanta, GA.”             

            They cut from the reporter to the CDC.  I thought the riots in town where bad, but this was otherworldly.  They had militarized police force shooting larger rubber pellets into the crowd.  There was an overturned police car that had been set on fire and you can hear gunfire coming from everywhere.  I reached over and took Dani’s hand.  She gave me a reassuring squeeze. 

            “Tension is at an all-time high across the nation and the world as we anxiously await news about the latest test of the synthetic vaccine.  A synthetic vaccine is our only answer to prevent a catastrophic 3rd wave of the virus. Returned in less developed countries are being hunted down for bounties our overseas correspondents have confirmed-”

            I turned the TV off not wanting to hear any more about how the world was going to shit. 

            “I’ll take the first watch.  Zac will take the second.  Give you and Mac and chance to recover from everything.”  Avery said moving to a chair into the center of the room.  Once she had it positioned she took the safety off the rifle and took up post.

 

            That was how we spent the next two days; huddled together living between our kitchen and living room. Dani, Jonah and I, Zac and his wife, and Mac and Avery.  It was cramped, to say the least, but Jonah was never out of our sight.  During the next two days Avery, Zac and I tried to reach as many connections as possible.  But the city was slowly running dry and between the 3 of us, we only managed to get another 6 vials of vaccines.

            Around mid of afternoon on the 3rd day hustling for some treatment, we all returned empty-handed.  I was so disappointed.  Our current count was up to 112 doses of treatment, just shy of 4 months’ worth.  We just had to pray things would turn around and the CDC would develop the synthetic treatment within the next 112 days.  But now we had to plan the best way to get out of town.

            “We aren’t going to get any more treatment in town.  I think we should leave first thing in the morning.”  I proposed. 

            “We better get everything together and packed tonight so we can get on the road before sunup,”  Zac added as he peeked around the curtain in the living room. 

            “We also need to make a food run and stock up on non-perishables.  Most of Okie is a food desert.”  Dani said reaching for the key to the freezer. 

            Mia volunteered to help Dani load his treatment into a portable cooler while the rest of us started to pack up our clothes and a few toys for Jonah.  We decided to turn the news on for a bit while we got things together.

            “We interrupt your scheduled programming to bring you this important news conference from the CDC.” 

            In unison, we all turned to the TV hoping they were about to announce the new vaccine.  A representative of the CDC took the stage.  He did not look like a man who was about to announce the drug that would save mankind.

            “It is with a very heavy heart that I report that the current vaccine trail proved to be unstable.”  He explained and furry of whispers could be heard in the background.  “We continue to be hopeful and are fervently fighting to resolve these issues.  That is why I must address the current state of the reserve.  Our country and the world at large, are at a dangerous all-time low.  In order to make sure we are able to provide the best care and fastest access to the new vaccine when complete, the government is requiring all return to report to special facilities that are designed to handle their unique needs.”  The whispers turned into angry shouts.  “Local news stations will broadcast the nearest facilities to your location.  Checkpoints will be set up to make sure everyone is in compliance.”

            The representative briskly walked off stage ignoring any and all questions before the screen switched over to an emergency alert.  A voice came on and told us that this was not a drill and that we needed to report to the nearest facility for treatment.  It also informed us that noncompliance would be considered a criminal offense punishable by law.  Locations scrolled across the bottom of the screen. 

            “Concentration camps,”  Mia said lowly.

            “Best care my ass, more like a bullet through the brain.”  Zac scoffed. 

            “Guys the United Returned Collation just posted on their Facebook that the police are setting up random checkpoints all over town,”  Mac informed us while looking down at his phone.

            “Then we leave as soon as we can get packed and get some food.”  I decided. 

            Avery volunteered to make the food run.  She had only been gone for about 15 minutes when we heard a crash and the sound of car doors open.  We surrounded Dani and Jonah.  Zac at the front door and me and Mac watching the back door through the kitchen. 

            There was a pounding on the front door.  “Jordan!  Open up right now!”  My father yelled from the other side. 

            We all lowered our guns and exchanged puzzled looks.  Was he here to beg us to turn Jonah over to one of those concentration camps?  I slowly opened the door but my father came barreling in.

            “Where’s Jonah?!”  He demanded looking frantically around the room.  “Is he safe?”

            “Yes, yes Dad,”  I said trying to calm him down.  “He’s right there.”

            “Thank God and all his angels.”  He grabbed me by the shoulders suddenly.  “Jordan it is not safe here-“

            “Yeah Dad, I know” I cut him off.

            “Shut up and listen to me Jordan.  They are coming.  The church informed me that if I did not participate in ‘cleansing’ my family I would kicked out of the church and the ARA.”  He said quickly trying to catch his breath.  “I agreed so I could protect Jonah the best I could.  I was supposed to meet them at the church a half hour ago.   They’ll know by now that I came here to warn you.  You have to go and you have to go now.” 

            I turned to Dani but she was already gathering what few bags we had packed.  We hustled to grab as much as we could. 

            “The best thing about being on the church board is having the keys to the van.  Your mom is out back with Jessica and Isaac.  They’ll have you covered.  Hurry.” 

            My father barely had the words out of his mouth when the first gunshot rang through the air.  We made a mad dash towards the back door except for my father.

            “Dad, come on!”  I yelled motioning him to come on.

            “Someone has to cover you from the front.”  He said as he pulled his gun from his holster.  “Jordan, I know we don’t see eye to eye about things but this is wrong and I want you to know I am proud of you.”

            “Dad please!”  I begged but Dani pulled me further out the back door as they started to break down the front.

            “Give Jonah my love.”  He said turning to the front door his gun raised and ready.

            In the backyard, Jessica and Isaac were on opposite sides.  Jess was right behind our tool shed and Ike behind Mac’s SUV.  Both were firing at foes we could not see.  Jessica yelled and waved for Danielle and Jonah to run to the van.

            I kissed her quick.  “I’m right behind you,”  I whispered before Mac ran her and my son to the safety of the van. 

            “Take Mia, Zac.  I’ll cover you.”  I said getting a firm grip on my gun with one hand and the cooler with the other. 

            As Zak made his way across the yard I heard the front door finally give way followed by gunshots.  I thought about turning back when I heard Dani screaming for me to come on.  I had just about made it to the van when I heard Isaac scream in pain.  A masked figure in the tree line by our back fence managed to get him in the shoulder.  My body reacted before I could even think.  I lunged myself toward my brother and fired serval rounds towards the shooter, before falling to the ground.  Isaac was slumped against Mac’s SUV in pain. 

            “I don’t think it’s major.”  He groaned through gritted teeth.  He threw his good arm over my shoulder, I grabbed the cooler from where I dropped it and we made our way to the van together.   Once we were all in the van Jessica fired a few more shots and climbed in through the back and began replacing her clip.  Dani and I threw ourselves over, Jonah.  Mom was in the driver seat with Zoe riding shotgun.

            “Everyone hold on!”  Mom yelled as she drove through the chain length fence separating my corner lot from the road.  She was fast but not fast enough.  A bullet pierced the back window raining class over my sister.

            “Oh my god,  Avery!”  Dani yelled suddenly remembering she had gone on a food run. “Someone has to warn her!” 

            “I’m on it.”  Said, Mac, as he fished for his cell phone.

             

           


	8. Drought

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> POV Zac  
> Taylor realizes he made a terrible mistake and Zac finds out something that disturbs him.

I grabbed hold of Mia and pulled her closer to me as mom drove like a bat out of hell for the next few blocks.  She wanted to put as much distance between us and the ARA snipers.  I wondered if she was thinking about Dad, I know I was.  I was sure he’d meet up with us once he handled everything with the ARA and the church.  Kissing the top of my wife’s head, I thought about saying a prayer but I was not sure there is a God anymore, or at least not a merciful God who listened to prayers. 

            After a few blocks mom paused at a stop sign.

            “Besides Ike, is everyone ok?”  Mom asked looking in the review mirror, her face pale with worry.  “Jessie, did that glass cut you?” 

            We all muttered that we were ok in unison and Mom continued on taking back roads trying to find the best place to get out of town.  

            Isaac was stretched out on his side on the row of seats behind us groaning in pain.  I hoped it was a clean shot and Dani could get him patched up.  Danielle used to be a nurse at Southside before Jonah required her constant care.  She leaned back across the row in front of us still clutching Jonah to her. 

            “Ike, just hang in there, buddy.  I’ll get you fixed up as soon as we get to the condo.”  She tried to reassure him. 

            He was hurting too bad to say anything but he managed to make a grunting noise that sounded kind of hopeful.  Mac managed to get through to Avery telling her to come straight to the condo and avoid the house altogether.  I noticed he didn’t mention that Dad stayed behind to cover us.  About that time mom turned on to what would have normally been an empty street.  But now to was teeming with slow moving traffic.  The other lane was blocked off by orange traffic barrels. 

            Taylor leaned forward trying to see what’s going on as the flow of traffic came to a complete stop.  “What’s going on?  Zoe, can you see anything?”  He asked.

            Zoe rolled her window down and leaned her head of out the passenger side window. 

            “Oh fuck!”  She cried. 

            “Watch your mouth young lady!”  Mom replied shocked at Zoey’s use of language.  

            Zoe popped her head back in quickly, “It’s a roadblock!  They’re going to be checking for Returned!”

            “Oh fuck,”  Mom whispered looking at our surroundings.  “Oh lord forgive me for what am about to do.”

            Mom backed up suddenly almost hitting the car behind us and turned the wheel as sharp as she could. 

            “Everyone, hold on!” 

            We all ducked down into our seats and braced our self as Mom pushed the paddle down and sped into the other lane, tires squealing. 

            Mia screamed as we hit the first orange barrel. 

            “Shh, baby, I got you.  Baby I got you.”  I said stroking her hair trying to calm her down. 

            We hit the next barrel and it popped up over the hood of the van and clips the edge of the passenger side window cracking it.  This time it is Zoe who screamed before she ducked down the best she can into the floorboard.  Mom continued to charge through the next few barrels sending them flying and by now the police were aware of what’s going on as we got closer to the checkpoint.  They stepped in front of the makeshift barricade, which was only made out of a few wooden saw horses.  Mom pushed the gas pedal to the floorboard. 

            “Help me, Jesus!”  She screamed as we went crashing through the barricade.  From what I can tell the officers got out of the way just in time. 

            But that wasn’t the last of them.  Tay, Jess, and I raised our heads to see the wreckage we had left behind only to see them rushing to their cars.  Soon we had two cop cars on our ass. 

            “Shit!  Mom their following us!”  I yelled just before the first shot was fired. 

            I heard Jonah start to cry as Taylor covered him with his own body for protection.  

            “Everybody get down,”  Jessica yelled from the very back of the van as she returned the fire. 

            Jess missed the first few times because Mom’s driving was unsteady from the high speed. 

            “Mom, slow it down just a little so I can aim!” 

            As mom eased up on the gas the cop cars gained on us.  They fired a few more times.  I raised my head over the seat because I knew I had to see what Jessica was going to do. 

            I could tell by her posture that Jessica had her sights on the target.  Once she assumed this position she never missed.  She fired her gun and took out the tire on the first cop car causing it to swerve sideways into the middle of the road where it was t-boned by the second cop car. 

             “Woohoo!”  I cheered at Jessie’s great shot. 

            She just grinned back at me and shots me a look that said: “what did you expect?”

            Mom though more shook than before continued to barrel down the highway out of town. With having to take so many back roads it took us almost three hours to get to the condo instead of the usual one because we had to double back.  The sun was starting to set as we pulled into the small condo subdivision.  It was positioned on one of the only hills overlooking Tulsa.  It was used mostly used as a summer getaway spot of retirees.  Mia and I were the only ones who owned a place under 40.  We were lucky that it was the beginning of fall so we were the only ones there. 

            Mia’s condo was a spacious two-bedroom unit with a fenced in courtyard in the front that provided us with a little extra security. It had been a graduation present from her grandmother when she finished college before her family abandoned her.  I was glad to have more space available to us after spending the last 3 days practically on top of each another.  It was extremely difficult to hide Mia’s condition but luckily she had a thought of a plan.

            When we first got to Taylor’s she hid a small lunch box with an ice pack in the very back of the linen closet in the bathroom so no one would see her meager stash of treatment.  Mia insisted that we shower together in order to conserve hot water but it was really so I could give her the medicine.  It was tricky and we almost got caught on more than one occasion but we pulled it off.  Now we had our own bedroom and much more space to branch out. 

            Mia was asleep on my shoulder when we finally came to a stop in front of the condo.  I brushed her hair out of her face gently. 

            “Mia, babe.  We’re here.”  I said softly patting her cheek to wake her. 

            She sat up and stretched.  “Good.  I’ll have Mac flip the breaker while you turn on the water valve.”  She replied still a little drowsy. 

            Danielle managed to carry a sleeping Jonah while Taylor helped Isaac out of the van and into the condo.  Once Mac flipped the breaker the house filled with light and we started to unpack the vehicle.  Jonah is awakened by the need to use the bathroom.  He came out to the van to ask me to turn the water on. 

            “Uncle Zac, I need to pee.  BAAAD.”  He said doing a little dance. 

            “Oh, sorry buddy, let me turn the water valve on so you can go,”  I replied as I grabbed my sleep bags. 

            Taylor was busy unloading his family’s bags from the front row of the van.  He sat the cooler out first.

            Though I was a few yards away turning on the water I heard Jonah clearly when he asked: “Dad, what’s that leaking from the cooler?” 

            Taylor and I both turned around quickly to examine the cooler.  There was this slightly blue liquid that ran from a crack in one side that made a small puddle on the concrete.  The look on Taylor’s face could only be described as a fish realizing that they cannot breathe on land.  I watched in horror as he ripped the lid of the cooler to find the contents are mostly shattered.  He let out this strangled cry that sounded like a wounded animal.  Everyone inside the condo heard and they came rushing outside to see what was wrong.  By now Taylor’s face was red with anger and he punched the side of the van hard enough to leave a dent.  His outburst scared Jonah and he ran to his grandma as Taylor continued to scream and punching and kicking the air. 

            Dani soon realized that source of his anguish and fell down in front of the cooler rummaging through the broken glass, tears starting to stream down her face. 

            “Ta—Taylor,” She called choking back sobs.  “There’s some down here in the b-bottom that aren’t cr—cracked.” 

            Isaac ran a hand through his hair. “This is all my fault.  If only I had been watching the tree line Taylor wouldn’t have had to save my ass.”  Ike turned away and rushed back inside followed by Mom and Jonah, Jessica and Zoe. 

            Mia turned to me and gave me a little nod.  She went over to Dani and began to help sort through to find the vials that hadn’t busted. I walked over to Taylor who was cursing God and screaming at the top of his lungs still. 

            “Come on man, you’re scaring Jonah.”  I tried to reason with him. 

            “Don’t you try and tell me about MY son!”  He screamed. 

            I grabbed Taylor’s arm and twisted it behind his back as he struggled to fight me off.  “I know, I know.  But he’s already scared enough, Taylor.  He needs you now more than ever.”  Slowly he stopped fighting me and collapsed back against me.  I threw my arms around my brother as he sobbed. 

            Taylor finally calmed down and went to check to see how many vials of treatment survived the trip.  Dani informed him that only 22 vials were left out of the original 112.  He sighed. 

            “Well, that’s better than I thought.  I’ll have to reach out to my sources in the city again to see if I can come up with any more.”  He said putting his arm around his wife as we headed inside. 

            We joined our family in the living room.  Isaac was sitting on the far end of the sectional with his head in his hands.  Taylor sats on the ottoman in front of him. 

            “Hey bro, it’s not your fault.” He said putting a hand on Isaac’s good shoulder. 

            Ike shrugged off Taylor's hand.  He always was the sulky one in the family. 

            “If I hadn’t been shot you wouldn’t have had to save my ass and drop the cooler.” 

            “Ike, brother, you risked your life for me first.  I’m so grateful to you and Jessica.”  Taylor said in his reassuring way. 

            “Yeah, Ike,” I added.  “What changed your mind?  Where’s Sarah and the kids?”

            “I wanted to show them a true man puts family first.  Sarah wasn’t too keen on the idea so she took the boys and got on the first flight back to her parents.” He said tearing up just a little.  Isaac was never the brother to wear his emotions on his sleeve. 

            “Dude, she’ll come around eventually.”  I tried to reassure him.

            Jessica came over with a tray full of bowls of chili.  “We’ll all feel better once we have eaten, showered and got some sleep.”

            Danielle grabbed her first aid kit and went to work digging the bullet out of Isaac’s shoulder. 

            “You’re lucky it’s intact.  It will be less painful to work this way.”  She said poking around Ike’s wound. 

            I noticed mom sitting in the recliner facing the door never taking her eyes off it.  Mac was also pacing back and forth behind her. 

            “Mom, Avery, and Dad will join us as soon as they can.  Everything is going to be alright.”  I said passing her a bowl of chili. 

            “I know.”  She softly replied declining the bowl of chili. 

            After that, we all gathered around and ate our bowls of chili in silence.

 

            We were about to discuss sleeping arrangements when we heard a car pull up.  Mom flew across the living room, opened the door, crossed the tiny courtyard and opened its gate before we could stop her. 

            “Avery?!  Walker?!”  She yelled as she pushed open the gate. 

            She stopped dead in her tracks as we gathered behind her in the courtyard.  I could see someone inside Mac’s SUV but I couldn’t make them out from this distance just yet.  The door slowly opened and out stepped Avery looking disheveled and pale.  The look on her face told us everything we needed to know.  When she looked up and locked eyes with Mom Avery started to cry.

            “I—I was too late.”  She managed to get out.  “Momma I am s—sorry.” 

            Mom let out a heart-wrenching sob as her knees buckled.  Taylor caught her and I helped him half carry half guide mom back to the Condo.  We all gathered around as Avery explained what happened after Mac called her. 

            “I had already finished at the store so my first instinct was to go to Dad.  By the time I got there they had him surrounded.” Mac wrapped an arm around Avery as she wiped the tears from her cheeks.  “I saw it happen.  He had managed to take out as many as he could before he ran out of ammo.  I kind of blacked out after that.  When I came to, all of the ARA soldiers were dead.  I didn’t want to leave Daddy, but I knew you need the food and so much was left behind.  I put the food and as much as I could pack into Mac’s SUV called the ambulance and headed out of town.” 

            Jessica and Zoe attend to Mom as she wept.  Taylor and Danielle huddled around Jonah as he cried.  All I could think about was how my child would never know their Grandfather.  Sure Dad had his faults, but he was still an amazing father and he died trying to save his family. 

Mia must have been reading my mind again because she slipped a slender arm around my shoulders,  leaned close and whispered, “We will tell our son how brave his grandfather was and name him Walker.” 

            It wasn’t much later that we decided was time to get some sleep.  Mia and I got the master bedroom, Taylor, and his family got the second bedroom.  Mom, Zoe, and Jessica managed to squeeze into the queen size pull out sofa bed.  Mac and Avery claimed the sectional and left Isaac with the recliner.  Once everyone got settled down Mia and I retreated to our bedroom so I could give her a treatment. 

            “I still can’t believe Dad is gone,”  I said as I slipped on a pair of gloves.  “It’s so surreal.”

            “I can’t imagine how you must feel,”  Mia replied putting her foot up on my knee.

            I opened the small cooler Mia used to pack her treatment in.  I noticed it looked fuller than it did when I gave her a dose the night before.  I counted the treatment and now she had 10 more vials than before.

            “Mia, where did these extra vials come from?”  I said as looked up at her.

            She grinned.  “Remember when we were packing?  I helped Dani pack up the treatment.  She turned her back for a few minutes and I managed to grab about 10.  If I had known Taylor would drop the cooler I would have tried to get more.”

            I finished giving Mia her shot and we laid down for the night.  Mia was asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.  But I felt sick to my stomach knowing that Jonah was only down to 22 vials and Mia stole 10 from the batch earlier.  I spooned Mia and ran my hand over her tummy forcing myself to remember the reason why I was lying to my family until finally, I fell asleep. 

 

           

 

 


End file.
